Metallurgical furnace.



L. A. SMALLWOOD, DEGD. A SMALLWOOD ADMINISTRATOR METALLURGICAL FURNACE.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 18, 1910. r

' Patented Dec. 30, 1913.

I UNITED sTA'rEs PATENT OFFICE.

LEONARD A. SMALLWOOD, 0F BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND; ALFRED SMALLWOODADMINISTRATOR 0F SAID LEONARD A. SMALLWOOD, DECEASED.

METALLURGICAL FURNACE.

Specification of ietters Patent.

Patented Dec. 30, 1913.

Application filed June 18, 1910. Serial No. 567,639.

certain cases, is also adapted for the roasting, calcining and smeltingof ores. According to the present invention, I combine a single grate orother source of heat with dual combustion chambers in a more eflicientmanner, the fuel-economy of a single grate or the like being coupledwith the regenerative principle of reversing or alternately directingthe flow of gases through the two combustion chambers, and I am thusenabled to obtain a degree of economy with the improved furnace whichisunattainable with either of said factors per $6.

In carrying the invention into efl'ect, the.

material treated is preliminarily heated by the waste gases of thefurnace or by radiation, after which they are introduced into a primarychamber in which a particularly high intensity of heat is maintained.While it has been said thatthe preliminary heating is effected by thewaste gases it will be readily understood that the said gases, issuingas theydo from the primary chamber, contain an exceptionally largequantity of heat with the result that the preliminary heating may becarried on until the temperature of the material treated is only a fewhundred degrees short of that in the primary chamber. Since also thefurnace products are first brought into contact with the materialtreated which are already at a high temperature, the process ofcombustion is accelerated rather than impeded, inasmuch as the billets,within the primary chamber being at an incandescent heat effectivelyconsume the smoke and uncombusted products, so that when the furnacegases reach the preliminary heating chambers and cold material to betreated contained therein, they are so completely combusted that theworking of the furnace is not appreciably afiected by the relativelycold materials with which the gases then come into contact, the :heatbeing readily diffused into contents of the chamber without theformation of smoke as is the case where the furnace products are broughtdirect from the firegrate into contact with the freshly intro- ;ducedmaterial.

The roasting, calcining or preliminary heating of ore is elfected in thechamber which the furnace gases enter through the smelting chamber andwhen smelting in the one chamber is complete the ffire box is placed incommunication with the other chamber containing the heated material and.;such material the contents of the finished chamber are removed andreplaced by fresh jore requiring preliminary heating. The gases issuingfrom the smelting chamber being at la very high temperature theunsmelted ore is heated in a material degree,-to within a few hundreddegrees of fusing point, and on after passing preliminary durmg thesmeltlng of the dampers being reversed and the full heat of the fire boxdirected to the ore at this temperature, fusion readily sets in and theprocess of combustion is in no way impeded "as would be the case if coldor practically lcold matter were placed upon the smelting hearth. Itwill thus be understood that the furnace is continuous, that is to say,while one quantity of material is being smelted a subsequent quantity isbeing preliminarily fheated so that upon the operation of smelting beingcomplete, the ore to be smelted has already been preliminarily heated.

In the drawing, forming part of this specification: Figure 1 1s asectional elevation-of a furnace constructed in accordance with thepresent invention, the section being taken on line XY of Fig. 2. Fig. 2is a sectional plan through the chambers of the furnace shown in Fig. 1.Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional elevation of the furnace shown in Figs.1 and 2, the section being taken through the central chamber. Fig. 4 isa detail of the door for the furnace shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3.

In a convenient embodiment of this invention such as illustrated by thedrawings, the process is conveniently carried on in three chambers,acentral chamber A with which the fire boX communicates or in which theliquid or gaseous fuel is combusted, and

two other chambers B, G, one on each side of the said central chamber.With this arrangement the whole of the furnace gases may be directed toeither or both of the said side chambers B, C, after they have traversedthe central chamber A, and when the whole of the gases are directed tothe one side chamber, preliminary heating may be carried on in the otherside chamber by radiation through the side wall. In the case of billetsand such like articles to be heated the final heating may be carried onin the central chamber, the latter constituting a secondary combustionchamber which the furnace gases enter after leaving the solid fuel firebox, but for all general processes of reheating the temperature of theside chamber is sufliciently high to complete the opera- 1 tion.

Thecentral chamber A may communicate with the side chambers B, G, by wayof fiues (2 open adjacent one end of the chamber A, which passunderneath the floor it of the side chambers and communicate with suchchambers by regulable apertures cl which are arranged at intervalsthroughout the length of the chamber on one or both sides thereof. It isto be noted by particular reference to Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawing,that apertures (Z are enlarged at the floor it of chamber B and Cproviding ledges 9 upon which may rest a stone block or other form ofdampers 9, having a recess g in the upper face thereof. This provides aconvenient and eflicient means whereby the apertures d may. becontrolled, the dampers 9 being moved to open or close communicationwith either chamber B or C, by the aid of an iron rod, having a hookedend, to be inserted into the apertures g of the dampers to facilitatemoving the same. Any other practical form of damper, rendering either ofthe chambers B or G inaccessible to the flow of gases, may be providedwithout departing from the spirit or scope of my invention. The centralchamber is deeper than the side chamber to accommodate the fused metaland slag which are tapped off in the usual manner.

In the application of gaseous fuel fittings to a furnace of thisdescription, the gas is admitted by way of a series of ducts e at theone extremity a of the central chamber A, opposite from the openings offiues d thereto and the necessary quantity of air is introduced by fiuesin the side walls intermediate chamber A and chambers B and C, whichfiues open into the central chamber by apertures or perforations farranged at intervals throughout the length of the chamber. The doors Tmay conveniently be composed of fireclay sections t held in a suitableframe If as shown in Fig. 4.

The gases which enter either or both of the chambers B and C may findegress through fiues I) which communicate with suitable stacks, notshown in the drawings, and by manipulation of dampers g the full heat ofthe fire box may be conveyed to. encounter the ore in either chamber, orboth chambers as previously stated.

The operation of the device is as followsz-Assuming that the dampers ofapertures d are positioned to close said apertures in chamber C, themain or primary heating chamber A is heated in any suitable manner,either by solid fuel or by gas, and inasmuch as the dampers controllingsecondary chamber B are open, the waste gas from the main or primarychamber is convey-ed through such secondary chamber, and furthermore,heat that may radiate through the walls from the main or primary chamberto the secondary chamber C. If the contents of chamber A are beingsubjected to a finishing heat, then the waste gas may be used insecondary chamber B to partially heatthe material before it is subjectedto the finishing heat in chamber A. Meanwhile materials can be placed inchamber G, such material being acted upon by the heat radiated throughthe wall between the chambers A and C, and receives the initial heat.When the finished material in chamber A has been removed, the materialin chamber B is placed in chamber A and the waste gas from the latterconveyed through chamber C, by opening dampers at controlling theapertures cl in chamber C and closing the similar apertures in thechamber B. The chamber B may then receive the material to be initiallyheated by radiation through the wall between chambers B and A. Thetreatment of materials may thus continue by reversing or alternatelydirecting the flow of gases through the secondary chambers.

I claim:

1. A metallurgical furnace comprising in combination, means forming aprimary chamber and secondary chambers at each side thereof, with a heatradiating wall between the primary chamber and each secondary chamber,said walls being provided with a longitudinal flue having ports leadinginto said primary chamber, both said.

primary and secondary chambers being adapted to receive the material tobe treated, and having openings for communication with said secondarychambers adjacent the other end, and means for rendering either of saidsecondary chambers inaccessible to the flow of gases from said primarychamber, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. A metallurgical furnace comprising in combination, means forming aprimary chamber and secondary chambers at each side thereof, with a heatradiating wall between the primary chamber and secondary chambers, saidwalls being provided with a longitudinal flue having ports leading intosaid primary chamber, said longitudinal fines having their bottomssubstantially level with the bottoms of the secondary chambers, bothsaid primary and secondary chambers being adapted to receive thematerial to be treated, said primary chamber having means for admittinggases thereinto adjacent one end and having fines for communication withsaid secondary chambers, open to said primary chamber, adjacent the endopposite from the said end adjacent to which the gases are admitted, andextending under the floors of said secondary chambers and openthereinto, and dampers for controlling said fiues in said secondarychambers, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. A metallurgical furnace comprising in combination, means forming aprimary chamber and secondary chambers at each side thereof with a heatradiating wall between the primary chamber and each secondary chamber,said walls being provided with a longitudinal fiue having ports leadinginto said primary chamber, the ports in one longitudinal flue beingdisposed opposite the ports in the remaining longitudinal flue, saidprimary and secondary chambers being adapted to receive the material tobe treated, and said primary chamber having means for admitting gasesthereinto adjacent one end and having fines for communication with saidsecondary chambers, open to said primary chamber adjacent the endopposite from the said end adjacent which the gases are admitted andextending under the floors of said secondary chambers and openthereinto, and means for rendering either of said secondary chambersinaccessible to the flow of gases from said primary chamber,substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

4. A metallurgical furnace comprising in combination, means forming aprimary chamber and a secondary chamber at each side thereof, the wallbetween said primary chamber and each of said secondary chambers beingof a heat radiating character, all of said primary and secondarychambers be ing adapted to receive material to be heated, said primarychambers having means for admitting fuel thereinto, and passages connecting said primary chamber with each of said secondary chambers, theoutlets from said passages into said secondary chambers beingdistributed between the vertical walls thereof, and individuallyoperable dampers for controlling said outlets.

5. A metallurgical furnace comprising in combination, means forming aprimary chamber and secondary chambers, one of said secondary chambersbeing at each side of said primary chamber and a heat radiating wallbeing placed between each two of said chambers, both said primary andsecondary chambers being adapted to receive material to be treated, saidprimary chamber being provided with means whereby fuel may be introducedtherein, the walls of said furnace being provided with passagesconnecting said primary chamber with each of said secondary chambers,the outlets from said passages into each of said secondary chambersbeing distributed over the floor thereof, and said passages runningunderneath the floors of said secondary chambers, and individuallyoperable dampers for controlling the outlets.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of twowitnesses.

L. A. SMALLWOOD.

Witnesses:

ARTHUR H. BROWN, HOLLIS F. BROWN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G.

